1. Field of the Invention
The invention generally relates to control of fluidic systems and in particular to a hydraulic system having hydraulically activated devices wherein the activation is selected from a location remote from the devices.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A variety of fluidic systems exist which require the selective activation of a plurality of fluid activated devices such as hydraulic actuators and/or hydraulic motors. In many of these systems, activation is to be effected from a remote location and each fluid activated device is connected directly to its own respective control valve through hydraulic lines.
In many systems, the control valves are in an enclosed area relative to the fluid activated devices thereby necessitating penetration of the enclosed area to effect fluid connection. For a complex system having many fluid activated devices, an excessive number of penetrations is required. The installation, quality assurance checks, and maintenance of hydraulic lines and penetrations represents a relatively expensive and time consuming task.
The present invention provides for a control system for governing the operation of fluid activated devices, however, with a significant reduction in installation and maintenance costs.